Naruto Uzumaki, Son of the Yondaime
by bigdogneversleeps
Summary: If an orphaned Naruto is revealed from the start as the son of the Yondaime, and that he is not the first container of the Kyuubi, how would life be for him then? Pairings Undecided. NOT NarutoxIno. They are siblings in this one. Naruto with original doujutsu
1. Chapter 1

So, this is a concept for a story I really liked. Pretty much, a much more positive childhood for Naruto, because people accept him since they all know his heritage and Kushina was just like him. However, both parents are dead. No one, that I have seen, has tried this combination. I hoped I pulled it off well. I am particularly proud of two scenes I handled in this chapter. One was my closing line in Sarutobi's speech about containers, one of the best damn lines I have ever written, and my handling of Sarutobi's thoughts on his wife demise by the hands of Tobi (I say Tobi, since there is a lot of confusion over the subject) I don't know how often this will be updated, or any pairings, but I hope you enjoy and review.

…

An eerie silence fell over the Hidden Leaf Village as the word spread that the Hokage was going to make a speech. The shinobi of the village, the ones who were not in the hospital tending to their wounds from the Kyuubi's assault, were now busy rounding up the scared villagers who had gone into hiding when reports of the Kyuubi were in the area came to pass. Other shinobi were retrieving the civilians who had made it to the designated bunkers, meant for their protection in events such as this. They were all congregating near the Hokage Tower, waiting to hear their beloved Yondaime speak.

Rumors had begun to spread about how the Kyuubi had been defeated by the hands of the Yondaime, and wild speculation began to spread throughout the crowd. A few big rumors were popular, and each were, at the least, interesting. The first popular rumor, stemming from the civilians, is that the Yondaime used the jutsu that earned him the name "the Yellow Flash" and had hit the demon so many times from so many different directions that it had been defeated. All the shinobi knew this was false, or else their numbers would have overwhelmed the beast. The second rumor came from the tide of relief forces and shinobi not out on the battleground, which presumed that the Hokage used his great jutsu, the Rasengan, and tore the Kyuubi to pieces bit by bit. The third rumor came from those near the battlefield, and saw the great toad Gamabunta be summoned. It combined the first two, and made the story that, while Gamabunta went hand to hand with the demon, the Yondaime used his Flying Thunder God Jutsu to get at the demon's head, and used his mighty Rasengan to destroy the demon's brains, killing him. The shinobi were not so sure of that, because even the mighty Rasengan didn't seem like it could hurt the Kyuubi so much.

However, the final rumor, started by none other than a broken Hatake Kakashi himself, had begun to become rampant and fill the minds of the crowd. He claimed his sensei summoned Gamabunta to hold off the Kyuubi long enough to use fuinjutsu to destroy the beast, but at the cost of his own life. This theory was the one that scared the people most, as it meant they lost their great leader, and no one had a clue on who could lead them as Hokage.

Two other points of topic became widely discussed. The first was theories about where the Kyuubi came from. No one had the slightest clue, as it hadn't been seen in nearly a century. The main theory that Iwagakure, mad at how the Yondaime had destroyed their forces in the Third Shinobi World War, had somehow managed to unleash the demon onto Konoha. A secondary theory was that Orochimaru, who had turned traitor after his non-nomination for the spot of Yondaime Hokage, had managed to unleash the beast on Konoha to kill the Yondaime and his old sensei so he could take over. This fear was forcefully alleviated by the shinobi, who made it a point that Orochimaru, no matter how strong by himself, would ever take Konoha. A few minor rumors of "accidentally awakening the beast's nest" or "punishment by Kami for some sin or another" were out there, but most gravitated to the first theory.

This led to fears about a fourth world war. Many people, shinobi especially, were just coming to terms with the third, and if a new one was started so soon, it would be chaos. With the rumor Kakashi has spread, about the demise of the hero of the Third Shinobi World War, it would mean almost certain defeat this time around. Shinobis tried to calm these fears with varying degrees of success, from areas of calm to hysterical patches in the crowd..

The final question on everyone's lips was what had happened with the Yondaime's wife, Uzumaki Kushina. It was a fact that she was overdue to deliver on her child, she having been pregnant for ten months, and the stress of this event would no doubt force the woman into labor. Many people wondered if she was okay, if the child was alright, if they survived or were victims of the Kyuubi. They wondered if, the Hatake story was true, how would Kushina cope with the tragedy. What if she had lost her son? What if Kushina was lost, and the child alright? These many things were spinning through the heads of Konoha, and words were eagerly waited for by upper authorities.

Finally, a figure began to walk from the Hokage Tower, holding within it a blue bundle. Many questions wanted to be asked by the crowd, but instead they waited in heightened anticipation. Finally, the figure became clear. It was one that almost everyone was familiar with, the Hokage walking out. But not the Yondaime, as hoped, but the Sandaime, his predecessor. He wore his old Hokage robes, which seemingly proved Kakashi's tale, but people prayed for this to be wrong. The Sandaime cleared his throat, and addressed the anxious mob.

"My people of Konohagakure, I bring you tragic news. My successor, Namikaze Minato, the Yondaime Hokage, died during his battle with the Kyuubi." Beneath him crying broke out, as shinobi and civilians alike began to grieve for a man that many had met and loved was dead.

"Because of this fact, and he named no successor to his title, it is with a heavy head I must resume my position of Hokage for this village."

Finally, a loud enough person clearly yelled out. "And of the Kyuubi? What of the Kyuubi?"

The Sandaime let out a heavy sigh. "The Kyuubi was defeated." Minor cheering broke out by those who were happy for the safety of the village and not dampened by the loss of their Hokage.

Another cry broke out, a village gossip who felt the need to know. "And how? How did he kill it?"

Sarutobi Hiruzen was at a standstill. Here he stood, in front of much of Konoha, with a blue bundle in his arms, with no clear direction of what to tell them. He had a plan, a plan of action that he felt was best for the safety of the village and for the blue bundle, but he failed to follow through. He had faith in his people, not nearly as much faith as his successor did, but a great amount of faith, but it was not enough. For the last few years, he had not simply stayed in the village as a retired painter, though it was his dream, but he rather was a traveling ambassador to the many villages in the realm. And through these travels, he saw a simple truth. A simple truth that sickened him. And as much as he wanted to what was the best for the blue bundle big scale, failing him here could be a much worse fate.

"I am afraid you misunderstand me, mam. I did not say he killed it, I merely said he defeated it." A collective sound of confusion went through the crowd, as Sarutobi took a big breath. "Before I tell you how he defeated the demon, I would like for you to know where the demon came from before he assaulted this great village." The interest was perked by many of the individuals, as no one wished for the theory that had been popular.

"The demon that attacked our village today escaped from one Uzumaki Kushina." Confusion spread through the crowd as many thought they had misheard him. They thought he had said that it came from their beloved Yondaime's wife.

"Could you please repeat that, Hokage-sama?" A person's question rung out, voicing the desire of many present.

"I said, the Kyuubi that assaulted our village tonight came from Uzumaki Kushina." This confirmation shocked the crowd, as many cries were heard denouncing this thought. One older ladies words rung out clearest of them all.

"Impossible. She was a bit of a hellraiser, but she was a good child. And that good child by no means was the Kyuubi!"

Sarutobi smiled at that. "You are indeed right, Toho-san. Kushina-chan was no Kyuubi. She was, however, the person that contained him." Even more confusion spread throughout the crowd as this statement puzzled many.

Sarutobi did not wait for the cries before he began to explain. " The Kyuubi no Yoko, along with the other eight tailed Bjuu's of this realm, cannot be killed by any conventional means. They are entities of pure chakra, and thus cannot be destroyed. So, in order to stop the rampaging of these demons, we are forced to seal them. Some can be sealed in simple objects, but most must be sealed inside of human beings. The Kyuubi, as the most powerful of these demons, is an example of this. These people who hold these demons back are our only hopes of stopping the demons from destroying everything we hold dear. They are heroes to all of us, as they are the dams that prevent damnation from reaching us."

The crowd was greatly intrigued by this fact, that there were those who lived their lives to protect them from those demons. They were hushed, waiting to hear more about the subject. Except for one perceptive Nara clansmen, who spoke up. "Well, what went wrong? Why was the Kyuubi released?"

Sarutobi sighed. "There is one major flaw with a women containing a Bjuu. When she is giving birth, the seal that is used to keep the demon is at its weakest, and the demon can escape. Tonight was the night that Kushina-chan was to give birth to her and the late Yondaime's child. Every precaution was made to ensure that nothing went wro-ng." Suddenly, he began to choke up, his eyes growing wet, much to the concerns of the crowd. He solidered on. "B-but it f-failed. An int-truder came in and killed the m-midwives. W-which…. W-w-which…w-w-which, " Sarutobi took a huge gulp, "which included my Biwako-hime." With that, he gripped the rail in front of him and let the tears fall. He cried for a few minutes, as the shinobi began to grieve for their reinstated Hokage. Some of the villagers were confused, until it was revealed to them that Biwako was the Sandaime's wife of many years and they grieved with him.

Sarutobi had not meant to break down. He honestly didn't. He had been waiting for this whole mess to be over to grieve, to cry, but he could not wait. His tears fell as he though about the many wonderful years they had been together, their two sons, and how had had promised her that, after she midwifed for Kushina, he was going to take on a beautiful cruise away from it all and finally enjoy their retirement. He was sad that he could not fufill that promise, and was sad he had lost his true love in this world. After a few minutes of tears following and silent sobs, Sarutobi composed himself long enough to finish explaining everything.

"The intruder kidnapped the child, and Minato fought him off. However, this was a diversion for the man's true goals. He used his power to release and somehow control the Kyuubi, and he ordered it to attack Konoha. Minato defeated him, and went off to defeat the Kyuubi. Kushina was gravely injured in the process, and thus unable to be used as a vessel for the Kyuubi. Unable to use her, Minato decided to use his son for the process. "A collective gasp rang out, even by Kakashi Hatake, who was unaware of this fact. "But he put no ordinary seal on it. From what I learned by studying it, he used a seal that will, over time , convert the Kyuubi's chakra into his son's chakra stream, slowly killing off the Kyuubi from existence. But to use this seal, he had to use a special seal, one that required the sacrifice his soul to Shinagami. He managed to do so with the distraction from Gamabunta, and brought down the Kyuubi. That was how he defeated it."

A silence hung over the crowd, taking in everything, unsure of what to say. Eventually, a shinobi ask, "Is Kushina okay?" This was a giant hope of many, that Kushina was alive to help guide her child in protecting them from the Kyuubi."

Sarutobi shook his head. "Her injuries were too great."

Silence reenveloped the crowd, except for one voice. "And their son? The one who hold the Kyuubi? The one who will kill it? Is he okay?"

Sarutobi began to get emotional again, happy that the villagers were different, that his explanation had worked. He nodded his head, smiling. He slowly took one hand and unwrapped the top of the blue bundle. Out popped a baby with yellow hair, blue eyes, and whisker marks on his cheeks. He slowly revealed him to the crowd, taking in the sight of this beautiful child, who was looking wildly from place to place, unsure of anything. He looks at Sarutobi holding him and coos, much to the delight of the crowd. Again, showing the baby's face to the crowd, the Sandaime proudly announces.

"I would like for you to meet the Yondaime's legacy and son, the child who protects us from the Kyuubi, Uzumaki Naruto!"


	2. Chapter 2

So here is chapter two, and I have to say this story is really popular. It might have only 242 views, but it has 10 reviews, 16 favorite stories and 22 story alerts! That is literally 1 out of every 11 people who read this put it on alert. Thank you for the love, and I hope it keeps coming. So enjoy and Review!

I do not own Naruto.

…

It was the day after the Kyuubi attack, a day of rebuilding, but it was a day spent in the Hokage's office for Hiruzen Sarutobi. He had to direct any necessary rebuilding in the village, adjust teams based on the losses, plan a mass memorial service for those who lost their lives in the attack, and another for the passing of the Yondaime Hokage, figure out what normal missions could still be accepted, and have to deal with a cacophony of visitors asking for one thing. To adopt Uzumaki Naruto.

The first to try, at the wee hours of dawn, was his long time rival Danzo. He calmly sat down across from the newly reinstated Hokage, took a glance to the crib holding Uzumaki Naruto, and got straight to the point.

"Hokage-sama, it would be best for the village if you allow me to take him in and train him."

Sarutobi's eyes grew wide. "Never! I will not allow you to turn the Yondaime's son into a weapon."

Danzo expected that response, and saw fit to elaborate. "Not a weapon, but a high functioning shinobi of the village, one that-"

Sarutobi forcefully cut him off. "Would be obedient only to you, have no emotions, and a disgrace to what the Yondaime wanted. He wanted his son to be a hero, not a lifeless tool."

Danzo shot a glare out of his good eye at Sarutobi, but merely continued his argument. "One cannot choice who their hero is, if he lovable or uncaring, as long as he is there hero."

Sarutobi had a look of disgust on his face. "Your hands will never soil this child. He is to be taken in by a loving family environment, raised to be what he wants to be, and live his life how he chooses it, no matter what that may be."

Danzo was taken aback by what was being implied,"."

"Well?" Sarutobi asked as he managed to silence his rival

Danzo shook as he spoke. "You mean to say you will let the most powerful person to ever live go through his life as a civilian?" You could tell the disgust Danzo had with the very concept of this untapped potential.

"If he so chooses." Sarutobi nodded.

"Then you are a fool. Other villages have their jinchukiris as powerful shinobis, we would be at a disadvantage if we do not do the same." Danzo tried to reason with his stubborn leader, but it was useless.

"I have seen those people, and might I say that what was done to them was terrible. They are human beings, but are treated as less than dirt. I will not let the boy suffer the same fate." Sarutobi passionately declared, eyeing Danzo the entire speech.

"Is that your final word?" Danzo sat there, invisibly fuming.

"Yes." That one word spoke thousands.

"May Kami hope your decision does not end Konoha, Hokage. May Kami pray." Danzo saw he would lose this war, as the Hokage had the power, and the Hokage had foolishly let his emotions get in the way of what needed to be done.

After Danzo left the office, Sarutobi had to spend a few minutes calming himself down from the passionate stand he took on giving Naruto a normal life. Danzo was not completely wrong, the boy should become a shinobi, and it would detriment Konohagakure to not have him in their ranks, but Sarutobi Hiruzen was not one to force an innocent person into doing anything.

The next person that came to request the boy was Shibi Abrurame, clan head of Konoha's kikai clan, no more than a few hours later. He respectfully came in, sat down, and waited for the Hokage to give him permission to speak. It was granted, and Shibi made his plea.

"Hokage-sama, I believe it would be best to allow our clan to adopt the boy. Why do you ask? Because we will protect him to the end as one of our hive, and his high chakra levels, as I can already sense, would be of great use to him in our clan. He would not only be able to control a hive, but also use chakra intensive attacks like his father's Rasengan." Shibi stopped talking, and waited for a supply.

The Sandaime took a look at his logic for a moment, and shook his head. "I disagree with you, Shibi-san. While you could protect the boy, I fear what the demonic chakra could do to your insects, and if it would be wise to have the insects within home, comingling in the same space as where the Kyuubi is stored. Though I fully trust the Yondaime-sama's sealing abilities, I do not believe he took in this possibility. Finally, with his mother's attitude as a possibility for him, I think it would be unwise for him to be apart of a clan that is so dependent on logic and a dampening of emotions. Trying to suppress his emotions, if he is like his mother, is highly dangerous. The risks are too great for his adoption into your clan."

Shibi took a minute to process the Sandaime's argument. "I believe you are right. Why do you ask? Because your argument is quite valid, and points out multiple flaws in the Abrurame clan from trying to take him in. I thank you for your logic, and hope you find him a good home."

The Hokage nodded. "As do I, Shibi-san, as do I."

The Hokage dismissed the clan head, and tended to his duties. The next two families to attempt to take him in were civilians, and the Hokage rejected their reasonings for separate purposes. The first came from a family with 7 children, and the Hokage did not trust their capabilities of handling a child like Naruto with their other 7 responsibilites. The second family he did not trust due to the criminal pasts, and held great fears that they may sell their son to someone to capture the windfall that would result from it. The Hokage dismissed them less than a minute after they arrived. In honesty, he doubted he would put the child with any civilian family, due to the risks in putting him in the hands of people who could not defend themselves from enemy shinobi looking for the child. He fully expected to place him in a family of shinobi, but picking the right one would be the hard part. He needed to look for a family that could genuinely raise him and make his own choices, and were not doing it for selfish reasons or would push the child unfairly, expecting to have the Yondaime reincarnate.

He waited patiently for more applicants for Naruto's adoption to come in, simultaneously dealing with all the paperwork coming in from people asking for funds to rebuild if something was destroyed, which he called in ANBU that were not on guard duty to investigate so Konohagakure was not scammed; and bearing over the numbers of casualties he suffered in the attack. The numbers were not as bad as they first seemed, but 199/480 dead and 280/241 injured (shinobi/civilian) was still a major blow to the village. He called in again the nursemaid he had managed to find to help take care and feed little Naruto, a women weaning her child, and let her take him out to the side room to change and feed him while he took the next visitor. When the side door closed, he called in the next group, and was mildly surprised to find Inoichi Yamanaka there.

"Ah, Inoichi-san, it is good to see you. Please take a seat." The Hokage gestured to the chair across from him.

Inoichi bowed. "Thank you, Hokage-sama." He quickly found himself in the seat.

"So how did the Yamanaka clan fare in the disaster?" The Sandaime asked, curious of the fitness of one of the major clans. He had not thought to ask the Abrurame, but he was sure to take advantage of the situation.

Inoichi sighed. "Fairly well, Hokage-sama, but we still lost 2 people, and another 3 are in the hospital."

Sandaime nodded. "That is most fortunate, only a few casualties came from your clan."

"Hai, thank you Hokage-sama. If you do not mind me asking, what are the total casualties?" The Yamanaka asked.

He contemplated if it was safe to tell him, and he judged he could trust the head of the Interrogation Department. "Not good. Current estimates are at 1200 total, with nearly 500 of those shinobi."

Inoichi cringed. He knew that was bad. Almost 10% of the active forces were out of action from one conflict. It could be handled with someone competent like 'The Professor' in charge, but left them somewhat vulnerable if someone took action against the weakened village. The civilian loss was not as damning, in all honesty it hardly put a dent on the population, but the numbers were large and flashy and would catch much of the attention. "Well, I hope the village will heal quickly."

"Hai, I think it will. I feared that the overall deaths would be considerably higher, but it only amounts to less than half of the casualties. I believe in a year we will be on solid ground, and healthy in 5 or so." The Hokage told him calmly.

The Yamanaka almost smiled at the good news, that the attack by the demon had not been damning to the village. "That is most fortunate to hear."

The Hokage nodded. "My thoughts, exactly"

A silence filled the room, as the Yamanaka clan head was unsure how exactly to about asking for guardianship of the former Hokage's son, so the Sandaime took lead.

"I believe you are here about Naruto."

Inoichi sighed in relief as the tension was over. "Yes, I think it would be a very good idea for him to be raised by me and my clan."

The Sandaime settled his elbows on the table in front of him as he stared at the man. "Why do you think it is for the best if you raise him?"

Inoichi took a big breath in. "It is not only my opinion, but also the opinion of the clan leaders of the Akimichi and Nara clans."

The Sandaime raised an eyebrow. "Really?"

Inoichi nodded. "Hai. We agreed that it was a good idea, and Nikko-chan loved the concept. She had told everyone she was carrying a boy, and knew it because of her maternal instincts, so she looked foolish when we found out it would be a girl. She loves little Ino-chan, but she does also wish for a son, which adopting Naruto does."

"Is that really your reasoning?"

Inoichi shook his head. "Of course not. It is a factor, but not the most important one. Naruto is a blonde with blue eyes, a common trait in the clan and matches both myself and Ino. He can easily pass as her brother and my son, making his life easier. He will need a strong family to help protect him, because we fear Iwa might try something."

"We?" The Hokage asked.

"Chouza-san, Shikaku-san and myself." Inoichi clarified.

The Hokage nodded. "Hai, I must admit I hesitated to reveal little Naruto's heritage because of Iwa, but I thought it would be a dishonoring of Minato's spirit to withhold the information."

"And what of the masked intruder you spoke of during your speech? The one that released the demon?"

The Hokage sighed. "It is an S-class secret, so I am afraid I can not say."

Inoichi eyes widened. "That bad? Can you at least clear the air, was Iwa involved?"

The Hokage went into deep thought, trying to best determine what would be a fitting answer. "All I can say was that no nation was at fault for the incident. It appears it was the actions of just one man."

"That is good to hear." A silence filled the room.

"What other reasons do you have, to ask for Naruto's custody, Inoichi-san?" The Hokage broke the silence.

"Due to our techniques, we are the best suited to monitor the child mental status. We can best determine if there will be any effect on his psyche by coming into contact with so much of the demon's chakra, or if the seal somehow degrades and lets the Kyuubi influence the boy. We will be able to give him counseling if need be, and be able to protect his mind from foreign influence."

The Hokage took a contemplative look. "If you do take him in, I have a few requests. The first, you will not force him to become a shinobi. You will allow him to make the decision if he is interested in the shinobi arts. I do not wish to force him into the field."

Inoichi understood where the Hokage was coming from. Forcing someone into a dangerous field of work like this could be psychologically scarring enough. If one was to compound that with the possible problems he may develop because of his connection, it could become a nightmare scenario.

"I agree entirely. It will be his choice."

"Secondly, I wish for him to retain the name Naruto Uzumaki. It was the name decide upon by Minato and Kushina, and I wish for it to stay that way."

"Uzumaki? Why not Namikaze?" Inoichi asked.

"As you may remember, Kushina came from a clan from Uzushiogakure that was destroyed in the Second Shinobi World War. She wished to pass on her heritage to her child, and continue the existence of the clan's name. Minato had no objections, and I hope you have none as well."

This one gave him pause, but he was quick to realize it made little difference in the long run if his name was Yamanaka or Namikaze or Uzumaki or even Uke. He nodded his agreement.

"Third, if does become a shinobi, I wish for him to stay in the academy until the normal graduating age."

This really gave Inoichi pause. "I do not understand, sir. Didn't Minato-sama graduate two years early?"

The Hokage sighed. "Yes, he did. But the reason I ask this… is for a variety of reasons. The longer he stays in school and can develop his abilities, the more of a chance he has against any forces in the world. Either those that want him for his heritage, or to harness the power of his tenant."

Inoichi saw this fear, and hated to say it was rational. There were many sick and twisted people in the world, such as the student of the man sitting across from him, Orochimaru. They would try and use Naruto, but not if he had any say on the matter.

"I understand, Hokage-sama. If Naruto becomes a shinobi, he will not graduate until he is the standard age of 12."

The Hokage smiled. Before he could speak, he heard a knock from the side door. Inoichi jumped a sliver, surprised by the noise. The Hokage calmly turned to the direction of the door and told her. "It is alright, Akane-san. You can come out."

From the side door, a tall women appeared. She had black hair that hung to her neck, and a bang that nearly covered an eye. She looked tired, as evident by her weary onyx eyes. She, however, was not the focus of the room. The lanky baby she was holding took the attention, squirming slightly, looking at everything in the room. His blue eyes met the ones of Inoichi, and he smiled. Inoichi returned the smile, and little Naruto began to flail towards Inoichi. Akane held him steady, as she eyed Inoichi.

"Who is he, Hokage-sama?" She asked politely, while keeping her eyes trained on Inoichi.

The Hokage returned his gaze to the man, who was more focused on looking at Naruto. And in his eyes, he saw what he was looking for. Not a conner, not a schemer, but a father.

"The proud father of Ino Yamanaka and Naruto Uzumaki." Inoichi eyes went wide as he heard the news. He turned to the Hokage.

"Are you truly letting me adopt him?" He asked, his voice slightly off from emotions.

The Hokage nodded. "I am sure you and Nikko- san will make great parents for both Ino-san and Naruto-san."

Inoichi shot up, and gave a great bow. "Thank you, Hokage-sama." He turned to his attention to his now son, Naruto. He looked up to the women holding him, and asked. "May I hold him?"

She nodded, and handed him over to his new father. Inoichi carefully held his head and body, and lightly swung him in his arms, happy about holding his new child.

Sarutobi smiled at the scene, of father meeting son. He had been worried it would take weeks to find a good parent for little Naruto, but he had managed to get lucky and find him a good home fairly quickly. He had managed to give little Naruto a sister that would be his age, and put into a family that would raise him well. He would still probably have to deal with an onslaught of civilian families trying to adopt the 'little Yondaime", and would probably hear complaints from the Hyuga and the Uchiha about them not getting a fair shake in the Yondaime's son sweepstakes, but he could handle it. Because Naruto Uzumaki had a home.

…

Author's Note: This will not be Naruto/Ino. They will actually be brother and sister. And I initially had no plans to put him with the Yamanaka clan, it just happened. But the best stories are like that, they just happen.


	3. Chapter 3

The best things for this story come out of the blue, and so did the plot twist I put in. I hope you like the chapter. View it, drop a review, and enjoy!

I do not own Naruto.

The OC Ginjiro is my creation however.

…..  
It was a quiet day in Konoha. Even if the Hokage hadn't declared it a day of remembrance, it would have been silent. It was the first anniversary of the Kyuubi's assault on Konohagakure, and the Sandaime Hokage had declared it a day to remember the lives lost, and to reflect on their lives.

This extended to "Yamanaka Street", a street adjacent to the famous Yamanaka flower shop where 95% of the clan lived. It also extended to the house of the clan leader, Inoichi and his wife Nikko Yamanaka. They were wearing black, remaining quiet and reflective even as Nikko baked a chocolate cake. They stayed solemn even as Inoichi put up the party decorations, the balloons and signage. They stayed reflective as Nikko made the strawberry icing to adorn the cake. Despite the day of remembrance, they could not forget that it was a day of celebration for them as well. It was the birthday of their esteemed son, Naruto Uzumaki.

Of course, he didn't know this. He sat in the living room, toys strewn around as they had been playing. His blue eyes widened as he grinned at his playmate, his (older) sister, Ino Yamanaka. She giggled as she rolled a purple ball towards Naruto. They had gotten in to the habit of playing ball, and they rolled them to each other. It had already became clear what were their favorite colors, as little Ino gravitated towards the purple balls and Naruto always snatched up the orange. Whatever ball was given to them was the one they played with, but you could always listen to the cooes if you had your eyes closed to know the color of the day.

Naruto rolled the ball back to Ino, but it missed and went to the side of her. Slightly annoyed even at 13 months, Ino huffed and pointed at the ball and looked at Naruto. Naruto was confused until Ino spoke up.

"Ball."

Their vocabularies were very limited, only down to the basic two of "Mama" and "Dada", along with a few others like "Up" or "Food" and, obviously "Ball".

Naruto shook his head. "No." They also knew "Yes" and "No".

Ino looked back at the ball. She could go and get it, but… "Yes."

"No."

"Yes."

"No!" Naruto whined.

"Yes." Ino said with finality

On the couch, a young man laughed at the scene. He was very lanky, and had a somewhat gaunt face. His short blonde hair is untamed, and slight bags are around his deep blue eyes. It was obvious that his new job in Interrogation and Torture was affecting his sleep patterns, but he knew from his older brother that it was a common problem. He was Ginjiro Yamanaka, the younger brother of the Yamanaka clan head Inoichi. Watching them with amusement, he could already tell the personality of his niece and nephew. His niece would be controlling and have the boys eating out of her palm, while his nephew would be stubborn.

Eventually, Ino gave up. Naruto wouldn't get the ball, so she would have to. She slowly stood up, as best as she could, and slowly walked to the ball. Right as she got there, she fell over and landed on her hands and knees, the ball underneath her stomach. She sat up and looked at the ball below her and grabbed it, holding it with both hands. Naruto looked at her, expectantly, but was surprised when Ino called out, "No!"

"Ball?" Naruto called out, really hoping to get it.

Ino held it tight to her chest. "No."

Naruto looked at Ino for a moment, and went into crawling stance. Then he quickly shuffled his way over to Ino. Ginjiro saw that this was going to end badly for one of them, so he got off of the couch and snatched Naruto up from the carpet.

Naruto yelped in surprise from being lifted in the air. He looked around, looking for who it was that picked him up, and saw Ginjiro. At first, he confused him with his father and said, "Dada."

Ginjiro blushed in embarrassment at being called that, which made Naruto realize that it wasn't his "Dada." Naruto began to cry out loud, even though he recognized his uncle, because he wanted his real father.

Ginjiro tried to comfort him, but was failing miserably. His crying was beginning to affect Ino. When Ginjiro saw her sniffling, he began to pray to Kami for a miracle. Little Ino had a set of lungs on her that could alert nearly everyone on Yamanaka Street that she wanted attention. As he braced himself for the cry, a sudden force took Naruto from his arms. In a state of shock he quickly opens his eyes and see his brother slowly rocking him in his arms. Ino had stopped too her crying, earning a sigh of relief from her uncle. Suddenly, the doorbell rings, but barely gains a glance from Inoichi.

"Ginjiro, could you get the door? It is probably some of the party guests." Ginjiro nods, remembering the list of approved people for the party. Inoichi and Nikko both feared a swarm of gawkers to come and try to celebrate the late Yondaime's sons first birthday. The only people coming would be those who saw him as the son of Inoichi and Nikko. Ginjiro opened the door and saw 3 adults and two babies. On one side was a man with a tan and jounin flak jacket with an odd pineapple hairdo. There is a women behind him, long black hair and soft eyes feeding the baby boy in her arms with a bottle. The boy looked very much like the older man. The other is a giant of a man with a little chubby baby in his arms. Both had distinctive swirls on their cheeks.

Ginjiro quickly threw his hands together and announced a loud "Kai" and looked back up, seeing the same 5 people, with the adults confused.

Ginjiro explained. "Sorry, but Inoichi feared uninvited guests, and they might have tried to slip in as one of you under a henge. But anyway, come in. Inoichi is in the living room with little Ino and the birthday boy, and Nikko is finishing the cake in the kitchen."

The giant man's ears perked up. "Cake? What type?"

Ginjro sighed, long knowing of the appetite of an Akimichi. "Chocolate cake with strawberry icing, Chouza-san."

Chouza grinned. "Sounds delicious." He walks in and goes right by Ginjiro to the living room. He turns to the other people at the door.

The woman is speaking to the man. "Come on, Shikaku-kun. Start moving your lazy behind! I want to talk with Nikko-chan, and I can't do it with you out here." Shikaku sighed.

"Yes, Yoshino-chan." He says in a voice with an obvious hint of sarcasm. Under his breath, he mutters, "Troublesome", but is still heard by his wife, earning a bop on the head.

"What did I tell you about saying that? I swear, you are the laziest man in the world. Sometimes I wonder why I married you?"

Shikaku had a mischievous and waved Ginjiro closer. He whispered in his ear, "Because she knows I'm far from lazy in bed."

Ginjiro let out an immature chuckle, while Yoshino glared at her husband. She didn't hear what he said, but she had an idea. "I pray, Shikamaru-chan, that you are not as lazy or perverted as your father."

As if on cue, the youngest Nara speaks up. "Tra-ba-sum."

Yoshino eyes went wide, as Shikaku did all he could not to roll on the ground laughing. Ginjiro failed to hide his amusement and laughed out loud. Yoshino tried to shoot lasers at Ginjiro, but he was laughing to hard to notice. She huffed and walked into the house, intent on talking to Nikko.

With her gone, Shikaku let out a chuckle. "That's my boy." Ginjiro only nodded. Shikaku then got into the house, going into the living room. A few of those on the street noticed them entering, so Ginjiro left the door open to let them all in, subtly checking them for a henge or genjutsu. He eventually catches one, a pink haired man, Kizashi Haruno.

Ginjiro sighed as he led the man out. "Your wife put you up to this?" He asks, knowing how his wife, a civilian councilmemeber, was about Naruto.

Kizashi nodded. "She threatened a sex strike if I didn't try."

Ginjiro just shook his head. "Why don't people understand, Naruto-chan will not be having an arranged marriage"

Kizashi shrugged. "She thinks little Sakura will be perfect for him. I simply sit and nod, and keep alcohol in arms reach."

Ginjiro laughed. "Good strategy. Well, at least you won't get kept out."

Kizashi sighed. "She might just anyway." He said dejectedly. Ginjiro couldn't help but pity the man. Haruno women were notoriously bossy and controlling, even more so than his niece would grow up to be. He had once dated a Haruno woman, one of the more sane ones, and still was smothered under her controlling nature.

On the opposite side of the spectrum, one of the nicest woman and least controlling women in Konoha walked up the sidewalk. Hitome Hyuga was quite a sight, as it wasn't common to see her strolling alone in Konoha, especially with her nine month old daughter Hinata in her arms. Ginjiro waved them hello.

Hitome gave a slight nod to him. "Hello, Ginjiro-san. How is everyone?"

Ginjiro shrugged. "Very well, Hyuga-sama. Ino-chan and Naruto-chan are getting along well enough, and Inoichi is comfortable at his job. The flower business is working wonder for Nikko-chan."

Hitome smiled. "That is very good to hear. And what have I said? Please, do not call me Hyuga-sama. If you must, at least say Hitome-sama."

Ginjiro bowed slightly. "Hai, Hy-Hitome-sama."

She walked into the house, when Ginjiro remembered something. "Wait, Hitome-sama. Where is your husband, Hiashi-sama? I thought I would have to kick him out."

Hitome giggled. " Hiashi-kun isn't coming. He already knew he would not be invited, and has begun to accept he will not be able to arrange a marriage between Hinata-chan and Naruto-chan. He know hopes to have Hinata and Naruto to play together often, and try to foster a relationship by that route."

Ginjiro sighed. It figured the Hyuga clan leader wouldn't stop at a simple no. At least they had semblance of a choice in the matter this way. "Nikko-chan is in the kitchen."

Hitome nodded. "Thank you, Ginjiro-san." With that, she left the doorway for the kitchen.

Ginjiro sighed, and resumed his duties as bouncer for a one year old's birthday party. The ridiculousness of that statement was not lost on him.

…

The Sandaime Hokage was one of the few people allowed on the list given to Ginjiro by his brother, but he was unable to come. He had other business that had come up, business that was directly tied to little Naruto. He was surprised this day had not come earlier, but finally, after a year, Iwagakure had learned of the existence of the son of the Yellow Flash. He was currently in the process of speaking to their Tschuikage, attempting his best not to start a war over this child.

"Under no circumstance would I even consider handing over Naruto Uzumaki to you, Tschuikage-sama. He is a member of Fire country, of Konoha, and of the Yamanaka family. He was adopted nearly one year ago today by the clan head and his wife, and I do not wish to remove him from his care."

The little Tschuikage grunted in annoyance. "I would not say that he should become a member of Stone Country, or leave Konoha. All we wish, would be for him to… cover the damages lost to us during the Third War as a result of his father."

The Hokage dismissed it. "That would be ridiculous. Financially, that would go into the hundreds of millions of ryo's, expenses which he had no hand in dealing. Even if you could ask for financial reparations for the actions of a single person in the war, that matter was dealt with in the Great Treaty."

The Tschuikage shook his head. "That is not what I meant. Though it would be nice to gain financially, I meant the loss of life his father caused. I believe our numbers put it at 3000 lives he ended."

The Hokage rose his eyebrow. "Where are you going with this?"

"It would be ridiculous to ask for him to restore all 3000 lives, but I do not think it would be ridiculous for him to restore 10% of those numbers." He explained.

The Hokage had a contemplative look on his face, until realization hit him. "You wish Naruto to became a breeding mule for your population?"

"Not a breeding mule per se. I suggest that, upon his 16th birthday and his body has matured, he gives us "samples" once a week for a years. Considering the average sample can produce six children, that would compensate us with the numbers we wish for."

The Hokage began to sputter. "That, that, that is ridiculous!"

The Tschuikage scoffed. "Hardly. It is honestly in your best interest. We get our wants, and you can guarantee the safety of your precious Namikaze Jr."

The Hokage growled. "His name is Naruto Uzumaki."

"Whatever, but we get what we want, you get what we want. We get a plethora of high level ninjas with high chakra reserves, courtesy of the boy's little infestation problem, and a great heritage, and you get to guarantee that boys safety through his seventeenth birthday."

"What of after?"

The Tschuikage shrugged. "It is doubtful I will be around that long, but given he would have fathered around 300 shinobi for our forces, I see no hostilities from my successor."

The Hokage grew very annoyed. "And if I refuse this?"

"Officially, nothing. Unofficially, I would not be able to stop all of the families that will seek vengeance on the boy due to their lost loved ones and anyone in their way."

"You are a bastard, you realize this?"

The Tschuikage smiled. "Maybe, but it is my job to do the best I can for my village. I will sweeten the pot even more for you Hokage-sama. Not only will I convince the Daimyo to lift the embargo on trade with the Land of Fire, I will sign a anti-hostilities treaty with you. The same damn thing you wanted in the war."

The Hokage damned the little man bargaining with him. He would have done a lot to get the last stipulation during the Great Treaty 5 years ago, his last act as Hokage previously, and still had failed. Now, this man was giving him it on a silver platter, for the sacrifice of one child. And not even a total sacrifice. It would give them a few hundred shinobi, but it would stop any wars and save thousands of shinobi their lives. Konoha was weakened by the Kyuubi's attack, and would most likely lose a war. And the Hokage had to put the needs of the many over the need of one. He felt uncomfortable turning the boy into a mule, but the benefits were too much to ignore.

"We will need time to write the treaty, and I want confirmation of the embargoes being ended. If either stipulation gets broken before his sixteenth birthday, the deal's off. But assuming neither are, you will get your wish, Tschuikage."

The Tschuikage smiled. "Thank you for seeing my way, Hokage-sama."

The Hokage couldn't help but feel dirty.

…

"Happy birthday dear Naruto, happy birthday to you." With that, Inoichi blew out the one candle on Naruto's cake. Nikko had blown out Ino's so it was only fair.

Nikko began to cut the massive cake, cutting one normal slice five ways for the babies of the group. Soon, the cake was gone, divided among all the guest as equally as possible. Chouza had two, but it was understood it was an Akimichi and he literally needed the extra food. Nikko put the slice before Naruto, the first of the babies to get there, and told him. "Food for you! Eat!"

Naruto grinned at the cake, and wrapped his fingers around it, holding it in his fist. He shoved it in his face, and was blinded by a flash. Inoichi was taking photos. After blinking away the blinding lights, he began to happily chew the cake he was given. He smiled, a cue that he liked it. With that, the other four babies were given their pieces and the adults began to eat.

Naruto reached out his hand again, another fist full of cake in hand, oblivious to the world and all of its ways. He shoved the cake in his mouth and grinned.


	4. Chapter 4

Here is the next chapter. I know many of you didn't like what happened in the last one, but I hope it doesn't deter you from reading on. Everything happens for a reason. So relax and review. Seriously, review, it is now ridiculously easy.

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.

…..

"Hiya, Hinata!" The little four year old girl turns around to the direction of the voice. She smiles when she sees two of her friends.

She begins to wave back. "Hi Naruto-san. Ino-san." Her father had instilled in her the need to use honorifics, even if others didn't. So she would always give her friends the honorific –san, since it was polite.

The slightly taller blonde waved back. "Hey, Hinata. I like your kimono."

Hinata smiles, and begins to twirl around a bit. Her father had given her a red kimono with roses to wear, and her mother had helped her put it on. "Thank you, Ino-san. I like yours too." She points out the sky blue one she was wearing.

Naruto began to fidget. "I don't like mine. It feels funny." He began to fidget in it a little, wearing a black kimono with a red spiral on the back, respecting his birth mother's clan's contribution to Konoha unknowingly. He pulls at its sleeves, trying to adjust it to make it comfortable.

Ino slapped his hands. "No, Naruto. Mommy said don't play with our kimono's!"

Naruto frowned. "But it feels funny."

Hinata smiled. "You just don't like it since it has no orange on it."

Ino nodded. "Yeah, Naruto. You just don't like it 'cause it isn't orange."

Naruto shook his head. "Nu-uh! The kimono doesn't feel right." He goes to untie it, but gets slapped by Ino again.

"No, Naruto. If Mommy said don't play with our kimonos, I think she would say not to take them off!" Naruto just frowned at the rejection. Hinata intervened.

"Wanna go play? Neji and I are playing in the other room."

Naruto and Ino smiled. "Okay!" With that, they followed the Hyuga heiress out of the room to where she and her cousin were playing.

Watching them, Nikko and Hitomi smiled. "It's nice that they get along so well together. I will a little worried that Hinata would become really shy, but your two have kept that from happening." Hitomi told her over a glass of wine.

Nikko smiled. "Thank you. I'm just happy that Ino has another female friend. Normally, it is just Shikamaru or Chouji over."

Hitomi nodded. "I know what you mean, I was worried about the same thing. A lot of the children are wary about playing with Hinata, since she is Hiashi's daughter, so she normally just plays with Neji. It is good that she has other girls her age to play with."

Nikko nodded. "It is just so annoying that Hiashi-san refuses to let any other children over to play with her. I'm sure Shikamaru and Chouji would be great friends for her to have, like they are with Naruto and Ino."

Hitomi sighed. "I know. He is just…very fickle about that. You know the only reason he lets you and Inoichi over so much is to try and arrange a marriage. I hate that he doesn't know when to give up on that."

That was very true. It had been over two years since the last person, besides Hiashi, had tried to arrange a marriage between their daughter and Naruto. Hiashi though was persistent, asking every few months to sign a contract in spite of everything. Though the funny thing is, it was not just to have the prestige in his family of having a Hokage's son be married to your heiress. Well, not anymore. Since they had become friends, Hiashi was also trying to secure a marriage for them so that he would not have to marry her off to some other Hyuga or worse even, a far off lord. The elders had always been fickle on the subject of female heirs. Both Hiashi and Hizashi could barely remember their older sister, born eight years before them, who was sent off to be married to the son of the daimyo in the Land of Fangs on her fourteenth birthday. He did not wish the same fate as her if Hitomi were to birth a son to him for Hinata. Hinata was truly his sunny place, and he did not wish to lose her. So if he could marry her off now, to a friend and someone in the village, the better for him.

"Please, it will save us both a lot of trouble when we are older. Your boy is most likely going to have a ravenous fan club when he is older, being the Yondaime's boy, and my daughter will have too many suitors to count. It will be easier if they are betrothed now."

Inoichi shook his head. "Nice try, but no. I am sure my boy can handle a few fangirls, and you can beat away the suitors with a stick."

"Yes, but some of the elders would not want me to beat them, or they may favor the suitor."

Inoichi shook his head. "So? Your daughter should be free to marry whomever they want. Like my little Ino. She will be able to choose her husband when she is older. About 35." The two men let out a chuckle.

"Unless you accept my proposal that she marries Neji…" Hizashi walked to them, overhearing the conversation.

Inoichi snorted. "Please, I do not wish to embarrass myself in front of the Kumo ambassador. Stop trying to make me laugh."

Hizashi raised his eyebrow. "Why not? Ino marries Neji, Naruto marries Hinata. The Yamanaka and Hyuga clan unites, into the Hyunaka clan! Or would it be the Yamayuga clan?"

Inoichi quickly left to try to walk off the laughter inside of him, while Hiashi and Hizashi try to maintain their Hyuga composure, when he bumped into someone.

"Oh, sorry. I didn't look where I was-" He finally looked up, and saw the robes and hat everyone knew. It was the Sandaime Hokage.

"Hello, Inoichi-san." He pleasantly greeted him.

"Hello, Hiruzen." The use of his name and lack of honorific was highly insulting, but he did not let it show.

"So, how has Ino and Naruto been? I haven't really seen them much in… about three years? "

"Ino is doing just fine. And don't worry, Naruto is perfectly healthy. So you don't have to worry about all of those precious Iwa babies. They are gonna be just fine." He spat out, his anger blatant.

The Hokage's jovial mask fell apart, and his Hokage gaze was unleashed. "So you still are holding a grudge. I was hoping that it was just a lack of time that was keeping me from them."

Inoichi looked around, and got somewhat into the Hokage's face. "Your damn right I hold a grudge, Hiruzen. How the hell could you sell Naruto as some breeding pig like that?"

"Better a breeding pig, as you say, then dead."

"You don't know that for sure!" Inoichi argued.

"Trust me, the Tschuikage made it very clear that if I didn't agree, Naruto would end up dead. I did what was best in his own interest. And if I had rejected the offer, the Tschuikage could have easily declared war on us for some supposed insult, and that is something I did not want. Suna was in flux and could not have helped us, so we would have lost many of our shinobi's lives. One's life is never worth the village. And, if you recall, we managed to agree to an alliance between ourselves. I think that is pretty good for what little we lost."

"Little! You have forced a man into becoming a breeding pig for Iwa, installing powerful blood into their army. What you have given up to protect us today, could very well kill us tomorrow!"

The Hokage shook his head. "I think you overestimate. It will be thirty some years before Iwa could even think to turn on us, and by then, with this alliance, they wouldn't want to."

"Baahh!" Inoichi waved him off, leaving. He turned around before he went. "You had no right to sell the Yondaime's- no MY son like that.." With that, he stormed off, leaving a few confused party guests about what had happened between the Hokage and the Yamanaka clan head.

…

"How do you keep finding us so fast?" Naruto loudly asked Neji. They had been playing a game of hide and seek, and Neji always was the seeker. He hadn't lost once.

Hinata was wondering the same thing, until he noticed his eyes. There were veins around them. "Neji-san!" She let out aloud, startling Ino and Naruto. "When did you activate Byakugan?"

The proud five year old smiled. "Last week. Father helped."

Naruto and Ino was confused. "What's Byakugan?" Naruto asked, with Ino nodding in their confusion.

"Byakugan is our families prized technique." Hinata explained.

Ino nodded. "I remember hearing that from daddy. What does it do?"

Neji smiled and showed off his new technique. "It lets us see chakra in people, even if they are hiding from us."

Naruto pointed at Neji. "That was how you found us?"

Neji nodded. "Not only that, we can see all around us."

Ino was confused. "What do you mean?"

Hinata explained. "That means, if I was looking at you with Byakugan on, I could see someone come in from that door," She pointed to the door right behind her, "without having to turn my head."

"So cool!" Naruto exclaimed, smiling. "How do you make it happen?"

"I send chakra to my eyes." Neji explained.

"So if send chakra to our eyes, we could have Byakugan?" Ino asked, thinking it was really cool, but Neji shook his head.

"No, we can do it since our eyes are special. Father taught me that if you guys tried sending chakra to your eyes, they might explode!" Naruto and Ino were nervous after hearing that. What if they accidentally sent chakra to their eyes?

Hinata shook her head at her cousin. "That isn't what father told me, Neji-san. He said it would do nothing."

Neji frowned. "Why would father lie like that?"

"Because my brother-in-law is a bit of a trickster, and wanted to scare whoever you told about how the Byakugan works." A voice came from the doorway. Hinata turned around and smiled. "Mommy!" She then ran over to her mother and hugged her legs.

"Hinata-chan, how have you liked playing with your friends?" Hitomi asked her daughter.

"It was fun. But Neji cheated and used Byakugan when he seeked." She slightly pouted.

Neji simply shook his head. "That is not true Auntie-sama. There was no rules against Byakugan."

"But…" Hinata tried to argue, but she was stopped by her mother.

"Neji-chan is correct. There were no rules against it, so he could use it. Now apologize to your cousin."

Hinata looked up at her mother confused. "Why do I have to apologize Mother?" She asked.

"Because, you insulted his honor."

Naruto and Ino were very confused. How did she insult his honor? Hinata, on the other hand, was petrified. The Hyuga family was a very honorable family, and their honor was one of their greatest values. To insult it, was a horrible crime.

"H-how did I insult it?" She stuttered slightly, a small quake in her legs.

"You declared him a cheater, when he was not. You slander his name in front of Naruto and Ino. That is definitely an insult to his honor if there was one."

Hinata understood this and quickly bowed to her mother. "Yes, okaa-san" The use of the proper name highlighted the seriousness of the situation. She turned her attention to Naruto and Ino. She quickly bowed to them.

"I apologize for telling you a lie. Neji-san is not a cheater."

She quickly moved on, and bowed her head deeply to Neji.

"I apologize, Neji-san, for calling you a cheater. You are not one, and I sl-sl-" Hinata was tripping over the word.

Her mother helped her out, "Slander, honey."

Hinata nodded her head awkwardly, as she was still bowing. "Thank you, okaa-san. And I slander your name by saying so. Can you forgive me?"

Neji was slightly embarrassed by the theatrics, but simply nodded his head. "It is alright, Hinata-sama. I forgive you." He used the proper honorific for Hinata.

Naruto and Ino were still confused about what exactly just happened, something about honor and calling Neji a cheater, but they realized everything was over.

"Hey, Hinata's mommy. Is dinner ready yet?" Naruto asked. Ino stopped herself from giggling. She knew her brother could eat a lot of food, and thought about it a lot.

"Actually, Naruto-sama, yes. I was coming to get you four. Come along then, as the appetizer is already being served. It is a dish called miso ramen."

"Sounds icky." Naruto commented, following Hinata's mother. The other three soon followed. But Neji was left to wonder why his Auntie-sama gave Naruto the honorific –sama.

…

"Dad, can we have ramen every night! It was the bestest food in the world!" A very vibrant Naruto asked his father.

Ino shook her head. "No! I don't like ramen. It is too salty."

Naruto shook his head at his sister. "No it isn't. It's perfect!"

"No it's not." Ino was quick to reply.

"Yes it is!"

"No it isn't." Nikko and Inoichi sighed. An argument was coming.

"Yes it is!"

"No, it's isn't."

"Yes it is!" Naruto tried to be forceful.

"No it's not!" Ino nearly shrieked. The parents put their hands on their shoulders.

"Ino-chan. Naruto-chan. Stop this instant!" Nikko spoke commandingly. They bowed to their mother's will.

"Naruto, we will add ramen onto the menu sometimes, since you seem to love it so much. However, it will not be anything like everyday, Ino, more like once a week. Understand?" Both children nodded their heads. Both were a little disappointed, as Naruto thought they should have ramen more often, while Ino thought they should have it less often.

Naruto's overactive mind quickly left the subject of ramen and went back to what Neji and Hinata had said about doing Byakugan. They said they could do it if they channeled chakra to their eyes. Naruto had a very very basic understanding of chakra, so he thought he knew what to do. Hinata and her mommy had said that nothing would happen if they channeled chakra to their eyes, and they wouldn't explode. Both Naruto knew his daddy could channel chakra to his ears and hear better. Why couldn't you do it your eyes to see better?

If he was in the academy, he would know for non-doujutsu users, that normal eyes could not conduct chakra in order to use them. The fluid in eyes were a counterbalance to chakra, and made enhanced vision an impossibility for the normal ninja. He didn't know this, so he decided to do the cross that Neji had showed them he used to channel chakra to his eyes and began to try and do just that. After his first failure, he just imagined the chakra going to his entire eyes, and not just the front. This was the key, as doujutsu users had to channel chakra at the back of their eye for their doujutsu to activate. All Hyuga's had to do this. All Uchiha had to do this. And Naruto had to do this.

He was shocked when the black night turned bright, as if he was in the middle of the day. He could see Ino's sky blue kimono, and his mommy's pretty orange and yellow one, and even the white one daddy wore with a stain from a drop of the ramen juice. That was when he noticed how clear everything was. He could a lot of details. He could see the loose strands of Ino's hair. He could see the freckles on daddy's hand. He could even see the ants marching along the ground He turned his head, and he could see the bigger bugs on the leaves of the Hyuga's hedge. He could see the face of the Kumo guy the party was for as he jumped over the hedge, with a moving burlap bag. Wait, what?

"Daddy!" He exclaimed. His father turned around and he nearly fainted. His son's eyes had become a vibrant, glow in the dark blue.

"What's wrong with your eyes?" He quickly asked, worried that was the matter.

"I did what Neji told me and put chakra in my eyes. Isn't it cool! I can see you guys like the sun is out! I can see really well too. Like the little stain on your kimono daddy."

Nikko couldn't help but chuckle while Inoichi blushed at being caught. His face turned slightly red.

"Why do you have a red face daddy?" It grew even redder.

Finally, Naruto remembered why he called out to his daddy. "Daddy, the nice Kumo man from the party just jumped over the Hyuga hedge with a moving burlap bag. Why was the bag moving?"

Inoichi grew serious quickly. He was wondering more why the Kumo man had jumped over the hedge in the first place. He knew the Hyuga had offered him a place to spend the night, so why he was leaving? Then there was the moving burlap bag. It was super suspicious.

Then he remembered reports from the Third Shinobi War he had overhead. Quite a few of the Hyuga and the Uchiha nins had reported attempts by the Kumo forces of keeping them alive when they could have been killed, and how they overheard that they needed to keep them alive for the Raikage. It suddenly made perfect sense.

He took off like a bullet, calling over his shoulder. "Nikko-chan, get the kids home and contact the Hokage. The Kumo representative had kidnapped a Hyuga!" He prayed he would catch him in time.

Both Ino and Naruto were worried. A Hyuga was kidnapped? Why would the nice Kumo man do that. They didn't have much time to think, as Nikko grabbed her children and dashed home. She would drop them off at Ginjiro's, and then go to the Hokage. This was bad. Very bad. She prayed her husband wouldn't get hurt against that Kumo kidnapper.


	5. Chapter 5

Here is the fifth chapter of my story, and it is quite the doozy. Here I explain a few things, and make a few interesting decisions I hope people don't mind. I only want good critical analysis, so no flames that I haven't changed the deal yet or anything to that matter. Review in general, though, are appreciated. _Note:_ Check my profile for a few challenges I made for people to write, both ideas I've had, but with my plate of fics can't get to. Enjoy the story! Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.

…..

The five and a half year old blonde began to look around the empty room he was in, and was beginning to get worried. No one was here for him, one of the black ANBU guys had led him here from his home, while his daddy was taken to see the mean old Hokage. At least, that was what daddy always said about the Hokage. That he was a bad man that was going to hurt Naruto in the future. He wouldn't say how, but he was scared of this bad man. He had asked daddy to stop this man, but daddy said he couldn't do anything to him since he leads the village. Naruto began to fidget in the metal chair he sat in, and he wished the ANBU man didn't leave him alone in this room five minutes ago.

Finally the door in front of him opened, and a strange man in red and white robes stepped in to the room. Following him soon after was his dad.

Happy to see him, Naruto leapt out of his chair and ran over to his father, giving him a giant hug. "Daddy! Are you ok? Did the mean Hokage hurt you?" He asked quickly.

His dad patted his head. "It's alright Naruto. I'm ok." Naruto smiled, looking up to his father.

He looked at the strange man and turned back to his father. "Daddy, who is that man?"

The strange man spoke up. "Hello, Naruto-chan. My name is Hiruzen Sarutobi."

Naruto nodded at the old man and stuck out his hand. "Hi there! I'm Naruto Uzumaki." He grinned as the old man began to shake his hand. "Wait, how did you know my name?"

The old man gave a comforting smile. "I know many things, young Naruto-chan. I know your sister is Ino Yamanaka, that you love ramen, that your best friends are Chouji, Shikamaru, and Hinata, and that your favorite color is orange."

Naruto's eyes went wide. "Wow, you're really smart!"

The old man chuckled slightly. "Yes, yes I am. Could you please take a seat, Naruto-chan?"

Naruto turned to his slightly frowning father. "Should I listen to Sarutobi-san, daddy?"

Inoichi nodded. "Hai, Naruto. One should always listen to the Hokage."

Naruto froze when he heard that. Was daddy saying that this nice smart man was really the mean old Hokage that wanted to hurt him? He slowly turned, a scared expression on his face. " Sarutobi-san, are you really the Hokage?" The fear in his voice was evident.

The Hokage stood up and couldn't help but shoot a glare at Inoichi. "What have you been saying to Naruto about me, Inoichi?"

Naruto mumbled out an answer. "Daddy says that you want to hurt me."

A furious glare later, the Hokage kneeled down and looked eye-level at Naruto. Naruto hid himself behind his daddy's leg. "You can trust me, Naruto-chan. I won't hurt you."

Naruto began to protest. "But daddy said…"

Surprisingly, Inoichi spoke on the Hokage's behalf. Somewhat. "It's okay. The Hokage doesn't want to hurt you until you are much older. He wants you perfectly fine until then" His voice was slightly bitter.

Naruto was very confused. "What do you mean, daddy?"

The Hokage tried his best to explain. "Naruto-chan, your daddy thinks that, in the future, I will do something to hurt you. But I swear to you, on the grave of your father, I will never hurt you."

Naruto was very confused. "What do ya' mean 'grave of my daddy?' My daddy is right here!" He tugged on Inoichi's pants leg to show him exactly what he meant.

The Hokage's expression showed his shock and he stood quickly up. "You haven't told him the truth, Inoichi?"

Inoichi shook his head. "I didn't think…I don't think he is old enough to understand." He tried to find the right words.

The Hokage sighed. "Maybe not, but soon he will be in the public's eye. He will need to know why he is treated like he is before then. I guess we will have to talk about two things today…"

Naruto was very confused. "What's going on?"

His father and the Hokage sighed. Inoichi took his hand and led him to the chair he had been sitting in. "Naruto, we will explain alright?" Naruto listened to his daddy, but was a bit hesitant. Was his daddy a zombie, like he saw in a movie? Why did his daddy have a grave?

Inoichi stood behind Naruto as he sat while the Hokage took the other chair. "Well, Naruto-chan, what I want to talk to you about is the ability you discovered the night of the Hyuga kidnapping." The Hokage began.

Naruto nodded, knowing what he was talking about exactly. The night he learned that he could see-in-the-dark, his daddy had chased after the Kumo man that had taken Hinata. Neji's dad helped him in the chase, when the Kumo man threw Hinata at the two of them. While daddy had caught Hinata and made sure she was safe, Neji's dad chased the Kumo man until he was attacked from someone helping the Kumo man. He fought them both, killing the one who attacked him and knocking out the other, but Hizashi died from his injuries. From what Hinata's mom had told him, the Kumo leader, the Raikage was very mad and demanded back their ninja. She told him that he was forced to fess up to what he tried, and had to pay the Hyuga clan for killing their clan head's bodyguard and they gave back the two who did it. Naruto didn't think that was fair, and he wasn't the only one. Neji got mad at everyone because somebody who had killed his father didn't get killed. He had begun training, and declared he would kill the man who killed his father.

"Well," the Hokage began to explain, "you know that your father has been seeing what you could do with those eyes of yours, right?"

Again, Naruto nodded. Daddy had wanted to know what exactly his eyes could do, since they were so awesome. If not, Hinata might be gone!

"Your father did this because I asked him too. We wanted to see what exactly those eyes could do. Do you remember the last time you went to the doctor, that we got blood from you?" Naruto gave a quick nod, rubbing the part where they had taken the blood. It had really hurt! "That was a part of the tests too. What we found out was interesting."

"Well, what can my eyes do?"

"Well, Naruto-chan, many things. We discovered that, with your doujutsu, you take all the light in the area and amplify it into what optimal viewing conditions."

"Huh?" Naruto really didn't understand.

"Your eyes will make sure you see normal, no matter how bright or dark it is." Inoichi explained to his son.

Naruto nodded his head. "Awesome!"

"Awesome indeed." The Hokage told him. "Also, because of how your doujutsu works, it allows you to see further and much better than normal, sight easily 5 times better than the best eyes people normally have, maybe even ten times."

Naruto grinned. "Cool! So I have, like, super eyes?"

The Hokage gave a nod. "Well yes. Though I believe the name Kesshogan for such a gift is better."

"Kesshogan?" Naruto asked him about the name.

"Well, since you have crystal clear vision no matter what, it seems like a good idea." Inoichi explained.

"Oh!" Naruto said in understanding. "Can my Kesshogan do anything else?"

The Hokage nodded. "Well, you can see through all Henge transformations, and even higher level ninjutsu transformation. And you know those weird colors you can see when your daddy is using chakra?"

"You mean the red and brown in his hands?"

The Hokage nodded. "It appears your eyes can see a signature given off by hands for elemental chakra. Meaning that you can see, if someone is trying to use his chakra, what techniques they can do. Red is fire jutsu, brown for earth jutsu, green for wind jutsu, blue for water jutsu, and yellow for lightning jutsu."

"So?" All those things his Kesshogan could do was nice, but what did it mean?

"Naruto-chan, do you want to be a ninja like your daddy when you grow up?" The Hokage asked.

Naruto nodded. "Yeah! Daddy is going to start training me and Ino soon! We both want to be awesome ninja like him!" Inoichi couldn't help but smile at the compliment from his son.

"Well, Naruto, seeing through henge's and such is very useful as a ninja. That way, people can't trick you. And if you know what type of jutsu they use, you can use it to know how to best fight and beat them."

Naruto took it in for a minute before jumping up, fist in the air. "My Kesshogan is so awesome!" It gained a chuckle from the two adults in the room. Inoichi calmed Naruto down almost immediately. There was still more to talk about.

"Finally, Naruto, the blood tests we did showed us something very interesting." Inoichi knew what was coming, and braced himself not to lose his anger at the thought.

"To count as a doujutsu, you must be able to pass it on to your children if you have them someday. We have determined that your ability may or may not be passed on. It is usually very easy to know if something can be passed onto your kids, but this isn't. Your kids might have it or they might not" Inoichi simply thought about what he was told in the office. Somehow, the trait for the doujutsu appeared in three forms in his bloodwork. At some area , it suggested that only he could have it. Other times, it appeared it would be a recessive trait and again in others it would be a dominant trait that was guaranteed that would be passed on. All Inoichi could think was that, because of the stupid deal made nearly five years ago, Iwagakure was going to be getting a custom made clan full of doujutsu users. It was the wet dream scenario of Kumo, but Iwa was getting the honors. Inoichi secretly wished that it had been Iwa that had tried to take Hinata, so he could have gone after them and killed them. Then he could try to use it to force Iwa to back down on that stipulation of the contract, or the contract itself.

Naruto was confused. What did they mean by kids? Did they mean when he was a daddy like his daddy? But how does one become a daddy. Hinata had a little sister, Hanabi. Where did she come from? On that note… "Daddy, where do babies come from?"

The reaction was instantaneous. The Hokage began to laugh, remembering when his sons asked the same thing, while Inoichi began to cough violently in shock of being asked that by his five year old son. When he readied himself, he shot a dark look at the Hokage, for more than one reason, and looked back at his son. "Naruto, you will find out when you're older."

"But I want to know now!" He protested.

Inoichi stood his ground. "No, Naruto. You will find out when you are older. Much older."

"But-" Naruto's whine was cut off by Inoichi's threat.

"If you don't stop I'll ban ramen from the house." Naruto froze, scared about losing the ramen he loved to eat a few times a week by this point, and kept quiet.

"So, do you understand everything about the Kesshogan know, Naruto-chan?" Naruto gave a nod, staying silent to make sure his ramen wasn't stolen.

The Hokage sighed, not at his understanding but the next task that had to be performed. "Now, Naruto-chan, I would like to explain to you what I meant earlier about your father."

Naruto's eyes lit up in interest, while Inoichi slunk back. He didn't want to have to confess to his son that all he knew was a lie, that he was in fact not Ino's brother, or his or Nikko's son, or Ginjiro's nephew. But it had to be done.

"Naruto-chan, do you find it weird how you are named Uzumaki, but the rest of your family is called Yamanaka?"

Naruto shook his head. "A name is a name."

"Well that might be true, in almost all families, one keeps the same last name as the rest of your family. Understand?"

Naruto thought about it and nodded. Last names were how family knew they were family.

"Then why would you have a different last name?"

Naruto frowned. Why did he have a different last name? He shrugged his shoulder. "I don't know." He admitted to the Hokage.

"That is because they are not your real family." The Hokage bluntly confessed. Naruto, even though the signs led to that answer, refused to believe. "Yes they are!"

Instead of arguing, the Hokage changed topics. "What do you know about Hokages?"

Naruto was confused about the change in topic. "Huh?"

"I asked, what do you know about the Hokages?"

Naruto put on his thinking face remembering everything he had been taught. "Um, Konoha has had four hokages. You are the Third, who took the job from the Fourth Hokage after he saved everyone by beating the Kyuubi who attacked Konoha."

The Third Hokage nodded. "Correct. I did take the job back after the Fourth Hokage died beating the Kyuubi. He and his wife fought bravely to beat the beast."

"The Fourth Hokage had a wife?"

The Hokage nodded. "Hai, he did. She was a strong ninja, the last from a village called Uzushiogakure, which was destroyed by war. She fought to the end, even though she just had a child."

"So women have children?" Naruto remembered the earlier conversation.

He nodded. "Yes, they do. She fought to protect her child that day, October 10th."

Naruto's eye went wide. That was the same day he was born!

"They were the heroes that day, those two. Our fourth Hokage, Minato Namikaze, and his wife Kushina Uzumaki."

Naruto eyes went wide in recognition. She had his last name! But how! Unless they were somehow family, but she was the last from her country. Did that mean…

"They gave their lives to protect this village and her son. A son who was adopted by one of the strongest clans in Konoha and has them as his family. You, Naruto Uzumaki. They gave their lives for you, their son."

Naruto's mind went on overload in his little mind. His mommy and daddy weren't really his mommy and daddy? His real mommy and daddy died to protect him. His real daddy was the hero that saved Konoha. But wasn't his daddy already a hero for saving Hinata? He turned to the man he knew as daddy, now in the back of the room.

"Daddy," Naruto's little voice was nearly broken, "is that true?"

Inoichi looked into the eyes that he knew of as his son and cringed. His son was going to cry, and he couldn't blame him. His life had been turned upside down. He let out a "Yes" underneath his breath, hoping his son wouldn't catch it, but he did.

It was a lie. Ino wasn't his sister. Mommy wasn't his mommy. Daddy wasn't his daddy. Naruto wasn't sure how to handle this, so he did what came naturally. He leapt from his chair, tears streaming down his face, and ran to the door. He swung it open and, as fast as his feet would move, ran far away from the man who told him about his real daddy and his fake daddy.

Inoichi, for some reason, couldn't move. He wanted to comfort Naruto right now, but he couldn't. He wasn't sure if he could fix this.

The Hokage casually got up and made his way to the doorway. He looked at the two ANBU standing guard. "Watch him, and make sure he stays safe. Report to me his locations." The two ANBU nodded and shunshin'd away. The Hokage then shook his head in a defeated fashion. "That went terribly."

The orders broke Inoichi from his trance. He marched over to the Hokage. "Watch him! Watch him! You told them to watch him! He should be gotten so I can talk to him about this, so Nikko-chan and I can talk to him."

The Hokage shook his head. "I think it would be for the best if you left him alone, so he can think. The knowledge he learned was quite shocking."

Inoichi got a cold look in his eye. "NEVER tell me what is best for MY son. You lost that right when you made the deal with the damn Iwa devil." He brushed the Hokage off, intent on finding his son.

The Hokage sighed and left the conference room quietly. He couldn't help but wonder where Naruto would run off to.

Naruto was running by his other sense for the most part, his eyes cloudy with tears. That was when he smelt the most wonderful ramen he ever smelt. He began to run his way to the smell.

A genin eating at the restaurant saw the flaps open and was shocked to see a blonde five year old boy walk in tears on his face. The nose scarred teen with a ponytail put down his chopsticks and decided to try and talk to the boy, finding out what was wrong with him.


	6. Feb 2013 Comeback

This story will be going on hiatus until 2013. While I like the concept, it has fallen in my view compared to my other Naruto stories and a possible return to my Pokemon fanfics. I will also be starting back up my sophmore year of college, so I don't need to have to make time to update this story. It is not abandoned, only being pushed back. I apologize to the fans of this story, but it must be done.


	7. Chapter 7

Here it is, the update for this story. Hope you haven't been too anxious for it. Drop a review to tell me what you think of the latest chapter. As a side note, this chapter is in honor of Inoichi. Those who read the manga will understand.

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto

…..

Iruka Umino, the almost 16 year old genin, was surprised when a blonde boy, no older than 5, stumbled into the Ichikaru ramen stand by himself. He left his ramen without a second thought to find out the situation. He was quickly kneeling by the blonde boy, hand on shoulder.

"Hello, little boy. Where are your parents?"

The blonde boy sniffed and wiped his nose. "Dead." Was all he said.

The bluntness of the statement struck a chord with Iruka, knowing the feeling of being alone, and having to live as an orphan. Iruka looked towards the ramen chef, Teuchi, looking for some sort of advice of what to do. He never really had to deal with kids outside of the occasional D-Rank mission, and only had some ideas of what a 5 year old boy might want. Teuchi looked at the little boy and said. "Well, I'm sorry to hear about that little boy. No child should have to go through that, but more kids in this village do than I would like to think about. Like Iruka here."

Iruka's eyes went wide at the casual confession of his orphaned state, and wanted to shoot a look at the chef, but was distracted by the blonde boy's comment. "Really?" He was trying to wipe the snot running down from his nose.

Iruka let out a sigh and nodded. "Yeah, I did. My parents lost their lives almost six years ago, when I was just 10. They died defending the village from the Kyuubi."

"So did mine." Naruto quickly replied back, garnering surprised looks by both Teuchi and Iruka.

"I sometimes help out at the orphanage, but I haven't seen you there." Iruka quickly said, trying to understand what exactly was going.

"I live with my fake mommy and daddy and sister! They lied to me and said there were really my mommy and daddy and sister!" Naruto yelled his little lungs out, expressing as much as he could the betrayal of a five year old boy.

Iruka guessed he finally understood the situation. The boy had just been told the truth about his parents and had grown mad at the lie. He was surprised that they would tell such a little boy that face. He didn't think anyone younger than 8 or 9 could really handle that sort of truth. He began to look at the boy, wondering how he would feel in his shoes, when he noticed his whiskers. It was an odd characteristic on a child. And with his bright blue eyes and blonder hair-

Iruka was startled to see that it was the Yondaime's son standing in front of him. He hadn't thought of it at first, but it became clear when he looked at him for a longer time. He had simply never thought he would get to know the boy. He really wasn't sure what to say to the boy about his "fake" parents, who if he remember the story correctly, was the Yamanaka clan head. However, Teuchi took the slack.

"They probably only said that because they think of you as your mother or father or sister. They don't think of you as someone else, but as their son or brother."

Naruto took in as best he could what the wise ramen chef said, but it was tough for him to conceptualize it. "But…how can anyone but my real mommy and daddy be my mommy and daddy?"

Teuchi ushered the boy over closer, who gladly listened. "Listen, I want to tell you something I don't tell many people, so you have to keep it a secret, okay?" Naruto anxiously nodded, liking the idea of knowing a secret. "I have a daughter who helps me at the ramen stand all the time, a wonderful girl named Ayame. I love her with all my heart and can't think of her as anything else. But, she isn't related to me one bit."

"Really?" Naruto asked wide-eyed.

The ramen chef nodded. "She is actually my best friend's daughter, someone who died in an accident almost ten years ago. I had to raise her in his place since he was gone, but I never thought of it as something hard. It is something I love, and I have found someone really precious to me. It doesn't matter how it happens, but anyone who comes into your life can turn out meaning the world to you. Do you understand what I am saying at all? I'm probably rambling on for a five year old."

Naruto shook his head. "No, I think I get it. You're saying, that as long as they love me like a mommy and daddy, it doesn't matter if they really are?"

Iruka nodded. "Ichikaru-san is right. You are really lucky to have people that love you like that even after your parents are gone. You really shouldn't run away from them either."

Naruto blushed slightly. "I have to tell daddy I'm sorry."

Iruka nodded. "I think you're right." Suddenly, he had a little bit of inspiration for how to bond with the boy. "Hey, how would you like some ramen?"

Naruto's eyes went wide, "DO I!" He yelled in excitement. Iruka let out a chuckle as helped the boy onto the stool as Teuchi prepared the dish.

…

Inoichi was franticly looking for his son. That idiot Hokage had probably scarred the boy, telling him that news so bluntly. He only hoped he could find him and make him not hate him. He wanted his son to love him.

He jumped from hiding place to hiding place as he looked for his son. He was very sneaky, and Inoichi knew that he could be a very stealthy shinobi when he grew up. He really wished he wasn't at the moment. As he dashed from rooftop to rooftop, a smell caught his noise. Ramen, really good smelling ramen. Deciding to take a chance, he checked to see if his son fled to the smell of his favorite food.

Pulling up the curtain to the ramen stand, he was relieved to see his son talking with the chef and another shinobi, probably a genin. He seemed really cheerful, and was gorging himself on his favorite food. He saw the smile on his face and couldn't help but smile himself. It always made a parent's heart warm when their child smiles.

Iruka noticed the man first, and slowly turned his attention to him, quickly followed by Naruto. With a nervous expression, Inocihi greeted his son.

"I was so worried about you Naruto. You shouldn't run off like that." The words naturally flowed out of his lips, concern clearly on his face. His body was tense, however, in preparation for Naruto's reaction.

Naruto took a gulp, looking at his father, and gave a smile. Inoichi was relieved to see that his son was at least not angry to see him. Then, the boy jumped from the stool and ran over to Inoichi. He jumped into the air, wrapping his arms around the man. "I'm so sorry, daddy! I shouldn't have ran away!"

Inoichi tried to hide his tears of relief that his son called him daddy. He simply kneeled down, and pulled his son into a hug. "It's okay, Naruto. It's okay."

The heartwarming scene went on for a few moments. Soon the two pulled apart, and Inoichi found himself sitting next to his son, opposite of the genin that had helped him.

"Thank you for watching over my son. I looked all over the place, but I didn't know where he went. What is your name?"

Iruka scratched the back of his head. "Uh, your welcome Yamanaka-san. It wasn't a big deal. And my name is Iruka. Iruka Umino."

"Well, thank you, Iruka. Now, Naruto," He turned his attention to his son, "finish up this bowl of ramen. We need to go home."

"Do we have to, daddy?" Naruto asked in between a bite.

Inoichi nodded. "Yes we do. Don't worry, though. I think we found a new place to eat out at."

Naruto grinned at the implication. Inoichi turned to the chef. "How much do I owe you, chef-san?"

The chef waved it off. "It's alright. It's on the house." He motioned in the shinobi a little closer and whispered into his ear, "I hope you won't be too mad, but your son told us about how he found out the truth. I know the feeling of bringing in a child that isn't yours, and how difficult it can be. Think of it as my thanks for giving him a family."

Inoichi nodded, slightly teary eyed from the random generousity of the man, and thanked him. Naruto finished off the bowl, and jumped off the stool. "Well, bye chef-san! Bye Iruka-nii!"

Inoichi was surprised by the designation, and Iruka looked a little embarrassed. "Well, bye Naruto." He waved the boy goodbye.

Inoichi said his goodbyes and father and son returned to their home. For the sake of convenience, Naruto was on Inoichi's shoulders.

"Daddy, I'm sorry about running away." He told his father.

"It's okay, Naruto. I understand. You were shocked by what the Hokage told you. We really didn't mean to keep it a secret from you, but we didn't want to make it seem we were treating you any differently than from your sister."

"It's okay, daddy."

They continued their walking, talking about more the abilities of the Kesshogan that had been confirmed by the Hokage when Naruto asked. "Why do you say the Hokage wants to hurt me? He seems really nice?"

Inoichi slowed down as he thought how to paraphrase this nicely. "It's complicated, Naruto. He really doesn't want to hurt you, but he wants to do something bad that involves you. Or, I think it's bad."

"What is it?" Naruto quickly asked.

"I'll tell you when you are older, alright? I promise."

"You promise?"

Inoichi nodded his head. "Promise."

Naruto gave a huge grin at that promise to the future. Inoichi helped him off his shoulders, and they walked into their home. They were the only two there, as Nikko and Ino were at the flower shop.

"Daddy, does nee-chan know that I'm not her brother?"

Inoichi shook his head. "No, we haven't told Ino yet. But I guess we have to know…"

"Don't."

"What?" Inoichi was surprised at his son's comment.

"Don't tell nee-chan. It doesn't matter, does it?"

Inoichi thought about it for a moment. "No, I guess it doesn't Naruto. I guess it doesn't."


End file.
